Dr. Kwei-Min Pan's specialties are general surgery and vascular surgery. He has a 4.0 out of 5 star average patient rating. Dr. Pan's areas of expertise include amputation, peripheral bypass surgery, and gallbladder removal surgery (cholecystectomy). Aetna EPO, Anthem, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield are among the insurance carriers that Dr. Pan accepts. Dr. Pan attended Taipei Medical University and then went on to complete his residency at Interfaith Medical Center. Dr. Pan (or staff) is conversant in Mandarin, Spanish, and Taiwanese.

Dr. Reginald Abraham's specialties are cardiac surgery, general surgery, and vascular surgery. He practices in Fountain Valley, CA. He is a graduate of Yale School of Medicine and St. George's University School of Medicine. His training includes residency programs at Sound Shore Medical Center and Montefiore Medical Center. Dr. Abraham's clinical interests include wedge resection, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), and bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery. On average, patients gave him a rating of 5.0 stars out of 5. He accepts Aetna EPO, Anthem, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield, as well as other insurance carriers. In addition to English, Dr. Abraham (or staff) speaks French and Tamil. Dr. Abraham is professionally affiliated with Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center.

Dr. Michael Berman is a physician who specializes in gynecologic oncology and obstetrics. His average rating from his patients is 4.0 stars out of 5. His clinical interests include gynecologic cancer, bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery, and biopsy. Dr. Berman's professional affiliations include St. Joseph Heritage Medical Group, UC Irvine Health, and Los Alamitos Medical Center. He is in-network for several insurance carriers, including Anthem, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and Medi-Cal. He is accepting new patients. Before performing his residency at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, George Washington University Medical Center, and Harbor Hospital, Baltimore, Dr. Berman attended George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and Georgetown University School of Medicine. He has received professional recognition including the following: Best Doctors in America - Obstetrics & Gynecology; Physicians of Excellence, Orange County Medical Association; and America's Top Doctors (Cervical Cancer, Gynecologic Cancer), Castle Connolly Medical Ltd.. He is conversant in Spanish.

Dr. Nahla Salem specializes in family medicine and practices in Huntington Beach, CA and Orange, CA. She attended medical school at Wayne State University School of Medicine. Dr. Salem trained at Oakwood Hospital & Medical Center for residency. She is especially interested in bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery. Her patients gave her an average rating of 1.5 out of 5 stars. She is in-network for several insurance carriers, including Aetna EPO, Anthem, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Dr. Salem (or staff) speaks the following foreign languages: Arabic and Spanish.

Dr. Huu Nguyen specializes in general practice, family medicine, and general internal medicine and practices in Santa Ana, CA. Dr. Nguyen (or staff) speaks the following foreign languages: Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese. His areas of expertise include bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery. He is professionally affiliated with HealthCare Partners IPA - South Coast. Before performing his residency at a hospital affiliated with the University of Iowa, Dr. Nguyen attended Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy for medical school. Dr. Nguyen's average patient rating is 2.5 stars out of 5. Anthem, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and Medi-Cal are among the insurance carriers that Dr. Nguyen honors.

Dr. Robert Woodhouse is a radiation oncology specialist in Fountain Valley, CA and Anaheim, CA. His clinical interests include bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery. His hospital/clinic affiliations include Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center and UCLA Health. Dr. Woodhouse is an in-network provider for several insurance carriers, including Aetna EPO, Anthem, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Dr. Woodhouse attended Thomas Jefferson University, Jefferson Medical College for medical school and subsequently trained at a hospital affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) for residency. Dr. Woodhouse (or staff) is conversant in Spanish and Vietnamese.

Dr. Rallabhandi Sankaram's specialty is adult nephrology. Dr. Sankaram's areas of clinical interest consist of bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery, transplant surgery procedures, and dialysis. Aetna EPO, Anthem, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield are among the insurance carriers that Dr. Sankaram takes. He attended Guntur Medical College and Andhra Medical College and then went on to complete his residency at a hospital affiliated with the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Sankaram (or staff) speaks the following foreign languages: Telugu, Spanish, and Vietnamese. He is professionally affiliated with Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center.

Dr. Hoa Nguyen's area of specialization is adult gastroenterology. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine. Dr. Nguyen's medical residency was performed at a hospital affiliated with Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science. Areas of expertise for Dr. Nguyen include bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery. He is in-network for Aetna EPO, Anthem, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and more. In addition to English, Dr. Nguyen (or staff) speaks Chinese and Vietnamese.

Dr. Philip Lynn practices general internal medicine and general pediatrics in Garden Grove, CA. Patient reviews placed him at an average of 2.0 stars out of 5. Areas of expertise for Dr. Lynn include bloodless medicine/transfusion-free surgery, electrocardiogram (EKG), and pulmonary function test (PFT). He accepts Anthem, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, and Medi-Cal, as well as other insurance carriers. After completing medical school at the University of Southern California (USC), Keck School of Medicine, he performed his residency at Los Angeles County+USC Medical Center. In addition to English, Dr. Lynn (or staff) speaks Mandarin, Vietnamese, and Cantonese. He is professionally affiliated with Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center.

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What is Bloodless Medicine?

For a variety of reasons, some people feel strongly about refusing blood transfusions and blood products. Bloodless medicine is an emerging medical practice that seeks to provide full medical care, including surgery, for these patients without the use of transfusions.

There are many legitimate reasons why a patient might wish to refuse blood products. Perhaps the most well known are the religious beliefs of certain groups, especially Jehovah’s Witnesses. But religious beliefs are not the only reason someone might choose bloodless medicine. Some of these reasons include:

Ethical decisions about the limited supply of blood available

Patients with rare blood types may not have access to donor blood

Fear of receiving the wrong blood type, which can cause a significant allergic reaction

Concerns about infectious diseases that could possibly infect the blood supply, such as HIV, Hepatitis B, Epstein-Barr, or Mad Cow Disease

When it comes to surgery, bloodless medicine succeeds by increasing the amount of red blood cells a patient produces before surgery, replacing any lost blood with fluids, carefully managing the patient’s health during surgery, and meticulously controlling blood loss so that as little bleeding as possible occurs.

Preparation begins by increasing the number of red blood cells the patient produces, so that any loss during surgery will not be as harmful. Patients may be instructed to eat iron-rich foods, given iron supplements, or given medications to increase their hemoglobin. The least invasive surgical procedures available will be chosen, as they require tiny incisions.

During surgery, patients are often positioned on a slope with their head lowered, to protect their brain from any blood loss. Their blood pressure may be lowered and their body temperature raised to reduce bleeding. They may be given 100% oxygen to help a reduced number of red blood cells carry sufficient oxygen to their body. Modern surgical tools are used that cauterize any broken blood vessels as soon as they are cut, in order to minimize blood loss.

Sometimes, a technique known as hemodilution is used. A portion of blood is removed from the patient at the beginning of surgery and replaced with fluids, diluting the blood circulating within the body. If bleeding occurs during surgery, the blood lost is this dilute blood, and not as critical. After surgery, the pure blood is replaced. In some cases blood that is lost during surgery can also be collected, cleaned, and returned to the patient.

Not all surgeries can be performed bloodless, but most can, including:

Open heart surgery

Liver transplants

Urinary tract surgery

Hysterectomy

Hip and knee replacements

Brain surgery

Despite all the precautions taken, during any surgery there is the possibility of unexpected hemorrhage. A hemorrhage, or severe episode of bleeding, can be life threatening without the help of transfused blood. Before any surgical procedure, it is important to make a plan with your physicians about what steps you would like them to take, or not take, in case the unexpected happens.